3 min read
A combination of global economic uncertainty, more extreme weather events, rising geopolitical tensions and the enforced shift to imperfect work models is making 2023 a year of massive change and challenges for employers and employees.
The importance of good mental health has undoubtedly grown since the start of the coronavirus crisis. Even in 2019, before the pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that one-in-eight people globally lived with a mental disorder1.
The WHO has calculated that the first year of the coronavirus pandemic triggered a 25% surge in anxiety and depression2. Recently the organization suggested that the lost productivity resulting from these two most common mental disorders costs the global economy $1 trillion annually3.
Several campaigns have been launched—locally, nationally, and globally—to spur more effective responses to this scourge. May is Mental Health Month in the U.S.4, and the U.K. has Mental Health Awareness Week5 in the same month. The WHO tries to draw attention to the issues at a global level every year with World Mental Health Day6 on October 10.
However, while many organizations say that “workers are our greatest asset,” there is a widespread suspicion that when people most need help, statements like these are not being acted upon. Is enough being done to support people through tumultuous and transformational times?
Firms that focus on engaging and helping staff both mentally and physically have understood the mutual benefits: change is better managed, and well-supported employees deliver greater productivity, teamwork, and innovation. Opportunities are maximized for the organization and broader society. Ultimately, putting people alongside profit can equip organizations to overcome shocks.
“Work environments in which employees can perform to the best of abilities.”
Maximizing wellbeing for all
Encouragingly, a recent survey for global technology firm NTT—including responses from 350 CEOs of large corporations in 16 countries—was highlighted in a white paper, The Business of Building A Better World. It shows how business leaders are beginning to realize the need to focus on this area.
The research, published in late 2022, found that 95% of respondents agreed that organizations must focus on human rights for all, with diversity, equity and inclusion helping to guide that objective. Of business leaders surveyed, 72% had adopted formal DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) goals and programs. But what does the optimal scenario look like in practice, and where is the evidence that such an approach works? NTT offers a prime example.
In 2021 the organization, which employs roughly 330,000 people worldwide, published its Global Sustainability Charter7. This cornerstone document set out a long-term commitment to promoting sustainable initiatives that achieve growth and prosperity while simultaneously resolving social issues. Its strategy for meeting this goal is based on three pillars: nature, prosperity, and wellbeing. This final pillar is arguably the most important because it is founded on respecting human rights, encouraging diversity and inclusion, and exploring new workplace models. It focuses on making sure people can come to work as themselves.
“AI is transforming the global economy and has the potential to contribute enormously to the development of a more innovative, prosperous and sustainable world,” says Mr. Smith, who is Co-Chair of the AI Council. “The CSIS AI Council brings together an extraordinary group of leaders to etch out what corporate responsibility, international collaboration and effective governance on AI looks like—not only in principle, but in practice3 .”
Flexible working models
Encouragingly, a recent survey for global technology firm NTT—including responses from 350 CEOs of large corporations in 16 countries—was highlighted in a white paper, The Business of Building A Better World. It shows how business leaders are beginning to realize the need to focus on this area.
The research, published in late 2022, found that 95% of respondents agreed that organizations must focus on human rights for all, with diversity, equity and inclusion helping to guide that objective. Of business leaders surveyed, 72% had adopted formal DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) goals and programs. But what does the optimal scenario look like in practice, and where is the evidence that such an approach works? NTT offers a prime example.
In 2021 the organization, which employs roughly 330,000 people worldwide, published its Global Sustainability Charter7. This cornerstone document set out a long-term commitment to promoting sustainable initiatives that achieve growth and prosperity while simultaneously resolving social issues. Its strategy for meeting this goal is based on three pillars: nature, prosperity, and wellbeing. This final pillar is arguably the most important because it is founded on respecting human rights, encouraging diversity and inclusion, and exploring new workplace models. It focuses on making sure people can come to work as themselves.
NTT has put this commitment into practice through its management strategy8 by creating what it describes as “work environments in which employees can perform to the best of abilities.”
Sources
1 https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-disorders
3 https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-health-at-work
4 https://www.mhanational.org/mental-health-month
5 https://mentalhealth-uk.org/mental-health-awareness-week/
6 https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-mental-health-day
7 https://group.ntt/en/newsrelease/2021/11/10/211110d
8 https://www.ntt.com/en/about-us/csr/priority/people
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